I. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to content sharing and, more specifically, to content sharing based on the proximity between the receiver and sender of the content.
II. Discussion of the Prior Art
Social media has enjoyed explosive growth over the past several years, enabling unprecedented connectivity and content sharing among users of smart phones, computers, and tablets based on the information infrastructure possible through the advent and proliferation of the internet and wireless communication technology. A host of applications exist to facilitate the targeted sharing of content among users of such devices, with one of the more popular being the “Bump™” application developed by Bump Technologies, Inc. Bump enables users of smart devices (smart phones and tablets) to transfer content by bringing two smart devices into physical contact with one another. Bump employs an application or “app” running on the smart devices and a matching algorithm running on servers in the cloud. The app on the smart device uses sensors to detect the physical contact (known as a “bump”), and sends that sensed information up to the cloud. The matching algorithm pairs up the smart devices that sensed the same bump and then routes information between the two smart devices in that pair.
While Bump provides a unique way of sharing content with another person, it is limited insofar as it requires that the smart devices (phone or tablet) be brought into physical contact with one another, which means one person can only share that content with another person at any given time. If it's desired to share this content with several or many people, it will be increasingly time consuming and thus inefficient. Moreover, it can sometimes take several attempts to conduct a successful transfer via the Bump application, which can create further inefficiencies and time delay.
The present invention addresses the need for improved content sharing among users of smart phones, tablets and computers.